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In a perfect world, your boss would act as a your coach and help you grow your career to enable you to play to your strengths and honor your professional goals. It's time to wake up and check back into reality, since in most cases that scenario is just a dream.
While there are some great bosses out there, there are many who are lacking in superior leadership skills. No matter what end of the spectrum your boss falls on, your career advancement is your responsibility, not his. So many people go through life letting momentum carry them along a career path. It's time to give yourself permission to take control your career future.
Here are six action steps to get you started down the road to career advancement and empowerment:
Have a Plan - Even if you are happy in your current position, you need to be thinking about your future growth or exit strategy. Keep time on your side by developing a vision of where you want to be in the next one, three and five years. Consider your salary, rank and the tasks of your position and begin to design a scenario that you can grow into when you earn the opportunity to advance. By having a plan, you can contribute to the conversation during performance evaluation time (and in-between) so the powers that be know you are serious about professional growth.
Earn a Sponsor - A sponsor knows your accomplishments well and will sell you to others that do not know you in your organization and beyond. Your sponsor puts her reputation on the line for you and gives you a professional endorsement that gives you clout and credibility. Your sponsor is willing to put his name out there for you in order to help you advance but the relationship is earned and is an investment for you and for them.
It's important to keep your sponsor well-informed about your accomplishments so she can go to bat for you and recommend you for key projects that will help you distinguish yourself in your current organization or another career arena.
Manage Up - Don't wait for your annual performance review to share what you are doing well. Your boss is busy doing her job and may not even realize all the great things you are accomplishing because everything is going so well. Prepare a brief monthly report to share with your boss that outlines the goals you have met or surpassed, new initiatives you have implemented and any information that will showcase that you are working above and beyond your expected job description. These reports will help your boss know you are promotion worthy and define your performance in terms that you create.
Ask For It - It's time to be the CEO of your own career and ask for what you want professionally. Don't take a passive role in your career advancement and never assume that your superiors know about your professional aspirations. Ask your boss for a promotion and make a strong case for your request by backing it up with comparative salary data as well as results of your accomplishments during a given period. Be clear about what you are asking for but enter the discussion with a negotiating mindset, open for revision and up for the discussion.
Don't suffer from low expectations, set your sights high and be specific about what you want and why you deserve it. In this economy you can't wait for a raise to come to you no matter how stellar you are at work. You must make the powers that be aware of your value-add, ask for what you deserve, and come to the negotiation with facts and a strong ability to negotiate.
Asking for what you want doesn't always involve a raise. It may be that you want to work on a new project or add travel to your schedule. Think creatively about what meets your professional values and ask for it.
Know Your Value - As you navigate your career advancement journey you will be adding experiences and professional strengths to your accomplishments over time. It's important to know what you do well and what is desirable in the marketplace in your particular field so you can plan your strategy accordingly. Knowing your special sauce will give you a competitive advantage and enable you to set yourself apart from the competition. This is especially important when negotiating for a raise or a new opportunity.
It May Be Time to Move On - In some organizations, moving up in the ranks is just not possible no matter how stellar your performance is due to rigid job classification structures and stagnant HR policies. If you can't move up to achieve the opportunity you deserve, you should think seriously about moving out of your organization and into another where you can bloom. It's up to you to recognize when there is a sticky floor and a low ceiling preventing your professional growth.
Don't rely on your boss to grow your career. You alone have accountability for where you want to go. If your current boss is not star material, giving you opportunities to grow within an organization that you love, it may be time to look for one that is. After all, you are in control of your career destiny. You have the power to take charge of your career future. Game on!
Caroline Dowd-Higgins authored the book This Is Not the Career I Ordered and maintains the career reinvention blog of the same name (www.carolinedowdhiggins.com) She is the Director of Career & Professional Development and Adjunct Faculty at Indiana University Maurer School of Law and hosts the national CBS Radio Show Career Coach Caroline on Tuesdays at 5pm ET. Caroline also contributes to AOL Jobs, CNN Money, and More Magazine online.


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This forum offers a discussion-platform for solutions, methodologies and topics concerning ARIS in Practice.
To let you gain insight, here are some examples of activities you can do in this forum:
Share your thoughts about ARIS GRC, ARIS Process Governance or Process Intelligence with us and other users and discuss new trends and real-life experiences!
Network and exchange your ideas with users who are interested in ARIS in the context of SAP.
Get in touch with other Six Sigma belts, Lean managers and BPM experts and use the opportunity to ask for support. Learn to deal with challenging tasks like the controlling or implementation of a Business Strategy and discuss in the community what the best management tools are!
As you can see this forum is very extensive and agile, so don´t hesitate to join us!

subset: commoncrawl


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At the risk of sounding like a shameless homer, I hope the Patriots win the Super Bowl, but if not then I hope Victor Cruz catches the winning touchdown pass for the Giants.
Cruz is a Jersey boy, but he went to UMass Amherst and he's forever a Minuteman. He also happens to be a great kid, as is Patriots safety James Ihedigbo, another UMass guy who during the offseason helps poor kids in Nigeria, where his parents were born.
If timing is everything, then UMass's is perfect. The people who sell Doritos and Bud Light are paying upward of $4 million for a 30-second spot during the Super Bowl. So, as UMass prepares to move up to the highest level of collegiate football, what is it worth to have not just one but two of its products suiting up for Super Bowl XLVI?
"It's incalculable,'' says John Sinnett, an assistant athletic director at UMass.
Charley Molnar, the new UMass head coach, has been on the road flat out since he was hired away from running Notre Dame's offense last month, recruiting his first class. He has spent the last two weeks reminding his potential charges that while UMass is just now stepping up to compete with teams that play in all those college bowl games, Cruz and Ihedigbo are playing Sunday in the biggest bowl of all.
It doesn't hurt when Molnar adds that UMass will play most of its home games on the Patriots' field at Gillette Stadium.
Not everybody is convinced that UMass moving up to the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision is a good idea. They say New England hasn't the mind-set for big-time college football. They'd rather UMass focus its attention and ever-precarious budget on other areas.
But there's a chance the addition of big-time football can help UMass, from raising its national profile to diversifying its applicant pool, to maybe even, in the long-run, making it more affordable for in-state students.
Boston College's transformation from a regional to a nationally recognized university was no doubt assisted by Doug Flutie's Hail Mary pass to beat Miami in 1984. And while the Flutie Factor of athletic success translating to a more prestigious university tends to be exaggerated, UMass officials see what happened at BC and what is happening at UConn as encouragement at least.
Not for nothing, but with six of its products on the Patriots and Giants rosters, BC has the most of any collegiate program in this Super Bowl.
There are huge differences between rich, private universities and a state university that is perpetually begging the governor and Legislature to properly fund it, but UMass officials are approaching the football experiment with realistic patience. This won't happen overnight. It is not a panacea for the cultural and political indifference peculiar to Massachusetts.
It is symbolically appropriate that neither Cruz nor Ihedigbo was drafted. UMass has to fight for everything it gets, including respect.
"I'm from North Carolina,'' Sinnett said. "And UMass as a school is more respected out of state than in state. It should be as respected in state, and that's where we're going.''
Playing football at the highest level, like these UMass kids will on Sunday, will raise the school's profile. But it also provides UMass with another tool to better harness the 250,000 UMass grads in Massachusetts, to coalesce alumni power and influence. That power has the potential to change any dynamic.
UMass will never be a football factory. And it's more important that the people who run the high-tech factories along the Route 128 and I-495 corridors are telling the governor and Legislature they need to invest more in all that is UMass.
It shouldn't take football to focus minds on such things. But watch those $4 million commercials this Sunday and try to say it doesn't.Kevin Cullen is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeCullen.


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Daily Public Tours
Free tours, led by museum guides, are available Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday at 11am, 12pm and 2:30pm and Thursday evenings at 6:30pm. Tours in Spanish presented by Goya are available every Saturday at 2pm. Los sábados ofrecemos recorridos en español presentado por Goya a las 2pm.
Tours are free with museum admission and last 45 minutes. Space is limited-first come, first served. Assisted listening devices available. ID required for check out. Organizations and groups of ten or more must schedule tours in advance. For a list of our Daily Public Tours Schedule, click here.
Private Tours
Book at private tour of Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) for a memorable and unique experience. PAMM's professional guides are highly-qualified experts such as professors, art critics and practicing artists, who can tailor your tour based on your group's interests.
Tour what has been described as "the jewel" in Pritzker Price winning architects Herzog & de Meuron's portfolio. You will visit both the exterior and the interior of the building paying attention to its unique design and construction elements, its gardens as well as the materials employed and its flexible plan.
Museum Highlights
This tour will introduce the visitor to the architecture of the museum and key works of art on view. Our guides start by exploring the museum's architecture and hanging gardens, then bring the group inside to discuss key works form the collection and temporary exhibitions. This is our recommendation for first time visitors, giving guests an overview of all PAMM has to offer.
Permanent Collection: Within Genres (based on availability)
The current presentation of the permanent collection is organized around the historical criteria of genres within Western painting and the traditional hierarchy of genres that developed out of the Renaissance period and was promoted within European art academies up through the 19th century. The five genres explored in these galleries, Still Life, Landscape, Scenes of Everyday Life, Portraiture, and History Painting developed as categories when painting was still in its infancy as a respected medium.
"Ask About Art" Family Tour (Thursdays and Saturdays, 2pm)
Join our PAMM Gallery Guide for an interactive all-ages museum experience. Each session includes informal discussions or an all-ages family friendly tour with an art-making activity. Free with museum admission. Drop-in, no registration required.
Thursday Evenings
PAMM is open until 9pm every Thursday. Following your private tour, enjoy PAMM's bayfront bar or make dinner reservations at Verde restaurant. Check our calendar for a robust schedule of lectures, performances and screenings.
Private tours are available (Admission is included.) Tours last approximately 1 hour and are offered during regular museum hours. Reservations should be scheduled three weeks in advance. Tours are offered in English and Spanish and other languages by request. Tours are not available on the second Saturday of each month. For more information, email firstname.lastname@example.com or call 786 345 5628.
Adults: $25 per person
Seniors: $22 per person (with ID)
All private tours have a minimum of 10 people and a maximum 25 people per docent.
Times: regular museum hours
School Tours, Knight Schools Program
Through Knight Schools Program, Miami-Dade County Public School students are invited to experience modern and contemporary art free of charge. Gallery tours are led by PAMM teaching artists, and are available Monday through Friday mornings. School tours must be scheduled at least two weeks in advance. Request a tour online or visit our educator resource page.
PAMM in the Neighborhood
This free summer program brings Pérez Art Museum Miami's (PAMM) art experiences beyond the museum's walls to provide access to education for youth at camps and community centers throughout Miami-Dade County. Gallery and site-visit experiences are led by PAMM teaching artists, and are available Monday through Friday during selected times.
Requests for this summer's PAMM in the Neighborhood program are now being accepted. Please use the link below and SCROLL DOWN below the Site Visit request for the additional TOUR REQUEST form.
Summer youth request forms
Tours for College and University Groups
College and University groups can request museum or self-guided tours of current exhibitions Tuesday-Sunday during regular museum hours. Tours are approximately 45 minutes long. Tours for student groups are available with valid ID. Professors must schedule self-guided tours in advance. Tours are not available on the second Saturday of each month. Contact firstname.lastname@example.com
Prices: $12 per student plus $50 fee
Tour times: 10:00am, 11am, 3pm, 4pm
Group Visits
Large groups of ten or more people visiting the museum without a guide are welcome during regular museum hours. Groups must schedule their visits at least three weeks in advance. Regular admission policies and fees apply. Museum-led groups take precedence in the galleries (groups are encouraged to visit at 10am, 12:30pm, 3pm, or 4pm, when PAMM Daily Public Tours are not in process). Please note that only PAMM lecturers are authorized to lead tours. Educators from accredited institutions may request to guide their groups or classes in the Museum galleries for non-commercial, educational purposes. A request must be submitted in writing in advance to email@example.com.
Access Tours
Tours with audio description and American Sign Language interpretation are available for guests with special needs. Large-print gallery notes as well as text panels and exhibition labels and assisted listening devies are available for our patrons at the information desk. ID is required for check out of assisted listening devices. PAMM also participates in Art Beyond Sight during the month of October, an international program that promotes awareness of the needs of people with visual impairments. Please schedule at least three weeks in advance. Tours are not available on the second Saturday of each month. Contact firstname.lastname@example.com or 786 345 5643
Tours After-Hours
To request group tours after museum hours, please contact Special Events at email@example.com or 786 345 5612.
* Booking requests are subject to availability
By entering the premises, you consent to interview(s), photography, audio recording, video recording and its/their release, publication, exhibition, or reproduction to be used for news, web casts, promotional purposes, telecasts, advertising, inclusion on web sites, or any other purpose by Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) and its affiliates and representatives. You release Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) its officers and employees, and each and all persons involved from any liability connected with the taking, recording, digitizing, or publication of interviews, photographs, computer images, video and/or or sound recordings. By entering the premises, you waive all rights you may have to any claims for payment or royalties in connection with any exhibition, streaming, webcasting, televising, or other publication of these materials, regardless of the purpose or sponsoring of such exhibiting, broadcasting, webcasting, or other publication irrespective of whether a fee for admission or sponsorship is charged. You also waive any right to inspect or approve any photo, video, or audio recording taken by Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) or the person or entity designated to do so by Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) You have been fully informed of your consent, waiver of liability, and release before entering the premise.
Scheduling Tours
*All groups, including self-guided groups, must schedule their visits at least three weeks in advance. To schedule your visit, please fill out the appropriate tour request form , as indicated above, and submit. Payment is due 5 business days in advance. Accepted forms of payment include cash and credit card. (Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover). Please note that only PAMM lecturers are authorized to speak to groups. Outside lecturers are not allowed. Professors from accredited institutions may request to lecture to their classes in the Museum galleries for non-commercial, educational purposes. A request must be submitted in writing in advance to email@example.com.


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Elizabeth Kelleher -- fascinated by voting patterns but frustrated by researchers' focus on why young people don't vote – immersed herself in a research study of college students who do vote as she completed her studies at Suffolk University.
The resulting thesis, which examines the cultural factors that influence college student voter turnout in presidential elections in San José, Costa Rica and in Boston, won the Best Paper Award at Suffolk University's Fifth Annual Department of Government Student Research Conference.
Kelleher then headed to Chicago to present her "College Voter Turnout" thesis at the 21st Annual Illinois State University Conference for Students of Political Science.
Promoting civic engagement
"People would only talk about why young people don't vote; there was nothing in the academic literature on why they do vote," says Kelleher, who will graduate in May as a dual International Affairs and Spanish major.
"If we don't understand why people vote, we won't understand how to motivate those who don't," says the senior, whose passion for civic engagement was first awakened through a high school Civics course and strengthened through volunteer work in the 2008 presidential election.
She found that students in both countries who vote do so because of concern about specific issues and because they believe it is their civic duty.
"This research shows that ... if college students are made aware of issues and topics that are relevant to their lives they are more likely to vote," writes Kelleher.
Kelleher spent three months conducting research in Costa Rica, where her fluency in Spanish served her well. She did additional research while in residence at Suffolk's Boston campus.
Kelleher's international student travels also have included study at Suffolk University's Madrid campus and a presentation of her research in Amsterdam, the European base for the InterFuture organization, which supported her research work.
Faculty support for research
Kelleher also collaborated with Government Department Chair Rachael Cobb, whose area of academic interest includes civic engagement and citizenship.
"It's wonderful when there is synergy between a student's and professor's interests," said Cobb. "Elizabeth's thesis is so good. It's original research not a literature review -- this is publishable work."
"Professor Cobb is incredibly supportive of her students," said Kelleher, noting that the Cobb got right on the phone after reading her thesis to obtain a place for her at the Illinois State conference.
Supporting career goals
Following graduation, Kelleher aims to work in civic education.
"We need to ensure that young people know their rights," she said.
Kelleher is involved in two internships as she completes her senior year, working on civic education initiatives for Latino residents through the OISTE organization and helping people apply for U.S. citizenship through the Massachusetts Refugee and Immigration Advocacy Coalition.
She also is involved with fellow students in creating a video encouraging young people to vote, to be entered in a Looking at Democracy competition, according to Cobb.
"Elizabeth is a wonderful student and peer to her fellow students," said Cobb. "She has so many talents, and that she was able to successfully compare Costa Rican and American voters speaks to her inventiveness and ability."


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By Julian Linden
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Steve Coburn, the outspoken co-owner of California Chrome, continued his bitter attack against the rules of the Triple Crown a day after his horse was beaten in the Belmont Stakes.
Winner of the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes, California Chrome had the chance to become just the 12th horse to complete the elusive treble but came up short when he dead-heated for fourth place in the Belmont on Saturday.
Like so many other horses that had failed at the final hurdle, California Chrome struggled to reproduce his best over the 1 1/2-mile (2,400 meters) distance of the Belmont.
Perhaps fatigued after competing in three races over five weeks, California Chrome also found the challenge of racing against fresher opposition too much.
His trainer and jockey both accepted the loss with grace, saying the horse had been beaten fair and square, but Coburn launched a scathing attack on the connections of the horses that beat him.
Immediately after Saturday's race, he called them "cowards" and "cheaters" because they did not run in all three races - which they are not required to do under the rules.
California Chrome injured his foot at the start, suffering a small cut behind his right hoof but Art Sherman, the colt's 77-year-old trainer, said it had no impact on his flat performance.
Sherman also told reporters on Sunday that he had no problems with the rules that had been in place for almost 150 years and expected Coburn to apologize for his comments.
"Horses aren't cowards and the people aren't cowards," Sherman said.
"He was at the heat of the moment. Don't forget he's a fairly new owner. Sometimes your emotions get in front of you. He hasn't been in the game long and hasn't had any bad luck."
But Coburn was unrepentant, insisting his horse had been robbed by an unfair system.
"These people nominate their horses for the Triple Crown and then they hold out two (races) and then come back and run one," Coburn told ESPN.
"That would be like me at 6 feet 2 inches playing basketball with a kid in a wheelchair...
"Would it be fair if I played basketball with a child in a wheelchair?"
The format for the Triple Crown had already been under scrutiny because no horse has achieved the feat for 36 years.
The advocates for change have suggested the gaps between each of the races should be widened to give the best horses more time to recover but the traditionalists argue that the Triple Crown would be devalued if it became too easy.
California Chrome's jockey Victor Espinoza, who also won the first two legs on War Emblem in 2002 only to be beaten in the Belmont, said the Triple Crown was not impossible but only a very special horse with a luck on his side could do it.
"I don't feel bad because of California Chrome, he was just a little bit empty," Espinoza said.
"But I'm sure, one of these days, sooner or later, we need to break this, this bad karma."
The connections of Tonalist declined to respond to the comments Coburn made about him, but plenty of others did, deriding Coburn on social media as a sore loser.
"I don't regret a thing I said," Coburn said.
"If you want to call me a sore loser, have at it. You can call me up. Here's my number."
(Reporting by Julian Linden, editing by Gene Cherry)


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Show Low is located in Arizona.
Show Low, Arizona has a population of 10,860.
The median household income in Show Low, Arizona is
The median household income for the surrounding county is $36,591
compared to the national median of $53,482.
The median age of people living in Show Low is
43.8 years.
The average high temperature in July is 86.2
degrees, with an average low temperature in January of 23.1 degrees.
The average rainfall is approximately 17.7 inches
per year, with 20.5 inches of snow per year.
No weather information available.
Show Low, the commercial and tourism hub of the White Mountains, was established in 1870 when C.E. Cooley and Marion Clark decided the place was too small for both of them. They agreed to let a game of cards decide who was to move. Clark challenged Cooley, telling him, "If you can show low, you win." Cooley turned up the deuce of clubs and said, "Show Low it is." At an elevation of 6,400 feet, Show Low is a thriving town and a great place to live. Tourism and recreation support Show Low's economy. The community is a regional trade and services center for southern Navajo County and portions of southern Apache County, as well as a destination and gateway for visitors going to the White Mountains.
Boating and fishing are popular in Show Low's many lakes and streams, and snow skiing is a favorite winter activity at nearby Sunrise Park Resort. The mild climate creates opportunities for sightseeing and outdoor recreation all year round.
Covey Luxury Properties - White Mountains
4000 Acer Lane
Show Low, AZ
(602) 999-1163
Realtors & Staff


text: Turquoise has been a highly popular semi-precious gem to many societies from the Egyptians to the Aztecs since ancient times. Turquoise is a very porous material, so heat, light, oils, and chemicals can have a negative effect on the stones color and luster. Turquoise is most popular in southwestern fashions. Use turquoise beads with sterling silver beads and charms, and heishi shells.


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Dewa gears up for giant industry expo
Dubai, March 20, 2013
Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) said it has completed preparations for the '15th Water, Energy and Environment Exhibition' (WETEX), which will be held under the umbrella of the Supreme Council of Energy for Dubai from April 15 to 17.
The major industry event, which will be held under the theme 'Sustainable Development for All' will see leading international players in the power, water, environment and energy sector from 32 countries take part in it.
Unveiling the details of the high-profile event, Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, the vice chairman of the Supreme Council of Energy and Dewa managing director and CEO, said the display area of the show had increased by 22 per cent to cover 40,000 sq m.
Al Tayer said this year Wetex will be held concurrently with the Dubai Global Energy Forum (DGEF 2013) sending a clear message that the UAE in general and Dubai in particular had put energy and environment topics on top of their agenda.
According to him, the exhibition has attracted strong regional, Arabic and international participation from 32 countries where companies and organizations will display a wide range of water, electricity, energy, environment and oil & gas equipment and solutions.
Al Tayer described the show as a must-attend event on the calendar of power, water, environment, oil & gas and energy companies from the world and the region.
"Companies participating in Wetex will compete to display best of breed technologies and solutions with an aim of boosting their business in the Mena region as well as forge new partnerships and seal strategic deals over the three days," he added.
Al Tayer revealed that Dewa planned to sign a number of major contracts in various fields at the upcoming show as part of its firm commitment to provide world-class water and electricity services to its customers in Dubai.
Wetex 2013, he noted, has attracted participation of ministries, government departments and organizations, municipalities, national and international companies and organizations, and public interest organizations concerned with the water, energy, environment issues, oil & gas and energy.
The participating countries include Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Jordan, Lebanon, the US, Canada, Brazil, Uruguay, Anguilla, France, Netherland, Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece, Finland, Austria, Belgium, Malta, UK, Russia, Malaysia, Turkey, China, Taiwan, South Korea, India, Indonesia, Japan and Iran.
Al Tayer emphasized that the show will discuss the latest solutions pertaining to green buildings in light of its responsibility to disseminate these technologies that conserve the consumption of energy and preserve natural resources.
The experts will also discuss international environment issues including climate change at Wetex as part of its role as a leading show in electricity, water, energy, environment and oil & gas.
"Wetex 2013 emerged as an ideal platform to showcase and address key issues in water conservation, protecting natural resources and sustainable development," he added.
The event has expanded its traditional specialization in electricity, water, environment to focus on advanced and professional technologies in the field of energy; including fossil fuels, nuclear and renewable energy generation.-TradeArabia News Service


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Throughout June, Morning Edition is reporting from North Africa. While the show is on the road, NPR Music is featuring songs that are popular in the region. Egyptian musician and activist Noor Noor helped us make that mix. Click on the audio link on this page to hear Noor Noor talk to host David Greene about how Cairo's music scene has changed in the year since the Arab Spring.
Last week, Egyptian activist and musician Noor Noor tweeted a photo of his hands, covered in bandages. He wasn't badly injured; in fact, the tweet included a smiling emoticon and read more like the proud display of a battle wound.
In a way, it was: Noor had broken three drumsticks playing at a march to Tahrir Square, trying to initiate what he calls "freedom beats." This time, he was there alone — but during last year's uprising, he helped gather many drummers during protests to not only keep the beat of the marching and chanting, but also to keep spirits high among those demonstrating.
Music played an important role in both reflecting and energizing the Arab Spring, but the artistic landscape of North Africa continues to flourish in the year since the revolution. One sign of this is that artists are expressing themselves in ways that may have been dangerous under the previous political regime.
With less fear of repercussions, musicians have started to address political and social issues more explicitly in their work—both in lyrics and performance. For example one of Noor's four rock bands, El-Zabaleen, makes its instruments from recycled materials as a way of promoting a message of environmental support. The hip-hop group Arabian Knightz raps about women's rights in the song "Sisters." Radio and television rarely recognized such overt activism in music before the revolution, but now artists who had been locked into Cairo's underground music scene are edging their way into the spotlight.
Social media and fewer technological restrictions mean better access to this music, too. Even without record deals or recording studios, musicians can post demos and live recordings to YouTube. Fans find music online and at concerts, and share it surreptitiously through flash drives and CD-Rs. This has been going on for years, but now that people are paying closer attention, Noor says, people will hear music from Egypt's underground scene in more places than ever — all over North Africa.
Still, commercial pop continues to dominate most outlets. Turn on the radio — NileFM, Cairo's largest English-speaking radio station, for example — and don't be surprised when a song by Rihanna or Justin Bieber pops up alongside Egyptian pop stars Amr Diab or Tamer Hosny. Tunisia's Mosaïque FM divides its airtime between Arabic and international pop hits, programming heavily from the same Billboard charts that American stations use.
But, Noor says, "I strongly do believe that the underground — or alternative — music scene will be gaining some ground."
Cairokee feat. Aida El Ayouby, "Ya El Medan"
Revolutionary bands such as Cairokee have become more popular as politicized music slowly becomes more common. "Two years ago, you'd usually hear Cairokee in underground concerts," Noor says. "Now this type of song is being screened on satellite television."
If you don't speak Arabic, "Ya El Medan" will sound like any emotional pop ballad. But the video, with images of bullet-ridden clothes, blood on a physician's coat and protest flyers, carries a deeper message. The lyrics directly address and personify Tahrir Square as another living, breathing member of the opposition: "In you we sang, in you we frayed / We fought our fears and then we prayed." The song is meant to "remind people of everything that has been scarified," Noor says. "There's still a revolution to be continued."
Wust El Balad, "Antika"
By combining the music of international subcultures with traditional Arabic sounds, some bands make their work more accessible across borders. Wust El Balad is one of the few acts that have been together for more than a decade, making music that fuses Arabic lyrics with American rock music, while using both Western and Middle Eastern instruments. Noor sees Wust El Balad as one of the strongest examples of an underground band that is seeking to shift media attention away from Egyptian and Lebanese pop stars, whose music is still the most prominent on the radio in North Africa.
DJ Amr Ha Ha & Sadat, "El Wesada El Khalia"
Perhaps the fastest-rising genre out of Cairo's underground scene is a type of dance music called "electro-sha'bi." "Sha'bi" roughly translates to "of the people," and this music originated in working-class communities as message-oriented songs. In recent years, wedding DJs, drummers and MCs have taken sha'bi elements — fast, driving rhythms and street-style chanting and singing — and combined them with hip-hop, dubstep and electronic beats. Once primarily heard at weddings in Cairo's poor neighborhoods, electro-sha'bi has lately found its way to audiences of many different backgrounds, via the radio and a few nightclubs in Egypt. "That in itself was a significant change," Noor says.
This month, our own Steve Inskeep is driving across North Africa, from Carthage to Cairo, where he'll be tomorrow. His Revolutionary Road Trip is revisiting some of the sites of massive uprisings during the Arab Spring. Today we're going to hear about cultural change that's afoot, some of the music that's percolating up from the underground. We asked NPR's social media guru, Andy Carvin, to tap his networks of contacts in the region and find us DJs and musicians to give us a feel for what's hot these days. Our music team mixed more than 100 songs into a stream that you can hear at NPRMusic.org. And we spoke with musician and activist Noor Noor in Cairo. He started by talking to us about a band in Egypt called Cairokee.
CAIROKEE: (Singing in foreign language)
GREENE: Egyptian music, I mean is it representative of music across North Africa broadly and across the Arab world, or is there something very distinctive about it?
NOOR NOOR: You know, historically speaking, Egypt has played a very important cultural role in the North African and Middle Eastern regions. And we constantly be exporting different types of music throughout the years. And same also applies to Lebanon and to Tunis. They have also exported some really, really good music - not just to the Arab world but to Europe and to North America.
CAIROKEE: (Singing in foreign language)
GREENE: Who is listening to a song like this from Cairokee? Where would you hear it?
NOOR: You know, two years ago you usually hear Cairokee in underground concerts, occasionally in the slightly bigger music festivals. However, now this type of song is being streamed on satellite television.
WUST EL BALAD: (Singing in foreign language)
GREENE: Tell us about this, what we're listening to here.
NOOR: The band that we're hearing now is Wust El Balad. And the main reason why Wust El Balad stand out is they were one of the few acts that, I guess, you know, began earlier this decade. And it was shifting the attention from the front man or from the singer, as we're used to seeing with regular pop music, and it was shifting attention to the band as a whole.
GREENE: More of a collaborative experience in music and not just focusing on one person.
NOOR: Exactly. And also Wust El Balad, they were using both Western instruments as well as Middle Eastern instruments, hence the whole fusing music together led to a certain musical product that many people found appealing.
GREENE: Well, my colleague, Steve Inskeep, has been sending us samples of music he's been listening to it as he's been on this trip. And when he gets to Cairo, I know he's going to be very excited to hear many new styles that are out there. And electro-sha'bi, that's one of the new styles that you're hearing in Cairo?
NOOR: Yes, electro-sha'bi - I found it very, very difficult to define this genre of music.
DJ AMR HA HA AND SADAT: (Singing in foreign language)
GREENE: And we should say the musicians we're listening to here is Amr Ha Ha and Sadat.
NOOR: Sadat, yes.
SADAT: (singing in foreign language)
NOOR: It actually started off in underprivileged areas of Cairo, many of which are slums or squatter settlements. And the fact that they managed to find their way into the radio and into even some nightclubs in Egypt, that in itself was a significant change. So I'm not really sure why this specific sound came out of these areas, but I definitely understand why. They have become popular with many different Egyptians from different social backgrounds.
GREENE: Noor Noor, thank you so much for talking to us.
NOOR: It was my pleasure. Thank you for having me.
GREENE: Noor Noor is a musician in Cairo. Our stream of music that's popular in North Africa has quite a variety. You'll hear Rihanna, Kenny Rogers, Justin Bieber. It's all at NPRMusic.org and also on the NPR Music app.
SADAT: (singing in foreign language)
GREENE: This is NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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Linked by Thom Holwerda on Mon 7th Jan 2008 20:41 UTC
"AmigaOS 5 made a covert appearance at an event outside the CES, turning up in the guise of a version of Space Invaders running on a Windows Mobile 6-based phone. Amiga - the company - was ostensibly showing AmigaAnywhere 2, the new version of its virtual machine technology. But taking Amiga President Bill McEwen aside for a moment, we discovered that AmigaAnywhere 2 is AmigaOS 5."


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Wow! I've never stopped so fast.
Reviewed By Frank W (The Colony, TX) Reviewed for a 2001 Chevy Corvette —2/21/2013 4:29 AM
Awesome. Not only do they look hot but they perform better than I had thought any brake pad could. I'll never use another brand. I only wish the front pads came in red too.


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9 Creative Recipes to Try
Here are some recipes you probably haven't tried before!Download All (9)
Download All is only available to Education.com Pro members. Learn More
Click on an activity in the set below to see more info.
Mocktails for KidsView Full Activity
Mocktails are fancy non-alcoholic drinks perfect for celebrations. Make a batch of mocktails for kids and adults alike at your New Year's Eve celebration.
Molasses CookiesView Full Activity
Mix up a batch of molasses cookies, and you'll have a delicious chance to teach your child some math and social studies in the process!
Bake Pizza MuffinsView Full Activity
Help your child learn healthy eating habits by transforming every kid's favorite food into a healthy, flavorful after-school snack.
Make Caprese Salad with Heart-Shaped MozzarellaView Full Activity
Focus on tasty savory dishes instead of sweet treats this Valentine's Day: make Caprese salad with heart-shaped mozzarella.
Make Pink Popcorn Pops!View Full Activity
Popcorn pops get a Valentine's Day twist with pink popcorn and a red candy center. Make popcorn pops as a special treat for Valentine's Day or any day.
Serve Green Mashed PotatoesView Full Activity
Kids go wild over this colorful and tasty recipe that's perfect for St. Patrick's Day: make green mashed potatoes loaded with healthy vegetables.
The set is continued below.
Make Your Own Butter!View Full Activity
Teach your child how butter is created by shaking up cream the old-fashioned way.
Pumpkin PancakesView Full Activity
Flip your way into the fall season with this easy and delicious pumpkin pancake recipe that your child can make on weekend mornings!
Make Meringue Science!View Full Activity
Make meringues with your first grader and see how states of matter can transform before your very eyes. Here's how:
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Fremd senior starter Catherine Ernst admitted she was a little nervous when the Vikings were nursing a 4-point halftime lead at Conant on Tuesday night.
We knew we had to take a step back, take a deep breath and come back out making the hustle plays, she said.
The defending Mid-Suburban League West champs did exactly that.
They kept the pressure on for all 16 minutes and now theres no pressure at all in terms of the divisional race.
Thats because the Vikings clinched their fourth straight West crown by posting a 42-20 decision while second-place Palatine fell to Schaumburg 52-51.
The Vikings (21-7, 7-2) earned the title with a 2-game lead over the Pirates (19-7, 5-4) with one to play.
That one to play happens to be Palatine hosting Fremd on Friday night at 6 p.m.
Sophomore Haley Gorecki led the Vikes with 14 points while Ashley McConnell (12 points) became one of the few MSL players to start on four straight MSL divisional championship teams.
A 3-pointer by Sidney OKeeffe got Conant (11-13, 3-6) to within 19-18 with 25 seconds left in the first half but McConnell was able to swing the momentum back to the Vikes when she hit a 3-pointer just before the second-quarter buzzer.
Ashley hit a huge 3-pointer there, said Fremd coach Dave Yates. Then Bernie (Williams) got us going in the second half with that 3-point play.
Less than a minute into the third quarter, Williams raced to the basket for a layup and converted her free throw to trigger an 8-0 run.
The Vikings never let Conant closer than 6, and pulled away in the fourth quarter by allowing Conant only one basket, a driving bank shot by Sarah Mazurek with 25 seconds left.
After our loss to Schaumburg (two gams ago), we (senior) said this is our last time and we cant lose anymore if we want to win the division, said Williams, who had 3 points and 3 rebounds. So this is a sigh of relief (winning).
We put things into perspective after that loss Schaumburg, Ernst added. We just said we have to put it all together for there for the our final three conference games.
Yates could not have been prouder of his players.
I thought Catherine, Brianna Lewis and Marilyn Lortz just hammered the offensive boards, he said. Thats something thats sometimes goes unnoticed.
Conant coach Dan Travers noticed the play of junior Katie Lomas (12 points) and freshman Nireet Dhillon.
I thought Katie showed she is one of good players in this conference, he said. And I thought Nireet (Dhillon) handled their pressure well. I thought their physicality hurt us.
We got hurt on the boards and by second shots. They made us work hard on defense. Haley Gorecki and Ashley McConnell are great players. The knocked down the shots.
We just didnt score enough points but I am proud of the way our girls stayed after it. Our girls battled.


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From WikiFur, the furry encyclopedia.
(Redirected from +SERAPHiM+)
|This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to WikiFur style and standards.
For specifics, check the edit history and talk page. Consult the Furry Book of Style for editing help.
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Viethra is an artist and musician that often uses anthropomorphic characters and themes in his work. He is an animator. They wrote for the web series Audience.[citation needed]
Viethra is responsible for several works of fiction:
- Archetype - A story about Earth dealing with extraterrestrials, Avani, that take the form of the sentient life and incorporate aspects of the other species on a given planet. On Earth, the result is furries. They are on a quest to contact and unite all the races throughout the Universe.
- FRENETiC - The first chapter in the story.
- Only HUMAN - A fictional story taking place years after FRENETiC, in the same universe.
- +Seraphim+ - A story about angels, aliens, furries, and music. The story jumps between deuteragonists, the fallen angel, Enronne, and the cloned anthro musician Evangeline. The story loosely retells the biblical book of Revelation.
Viethra's fursona is a king cheetah anthro. He has a "viethra" symbol on his forehead, spots, and "king" markings which basically means three stripes along the spine and some fused spots. He also has desaturated black/brown hair.
External links[edit]
- Viethra on deviantART
- Viethra on Fur Affinity


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Einstein medical student Aimee Krauz received a third-place award in the Montefiore Young Investigator Symposium April 4, 2014. Ms. Krausz's presentation was entitled "Curcumin-encapsulated nano particles as an innovative antimicrobial and wound healing therapy".
Under the mentorship of Dr. Adam Friedman, Ms. Krausz is currently undertaking the Einstein-Montefiore Basic Science/Translational Research Fellowship. Her research focus is nanotechnology and its translational applications in dermatology, particularly for antimicrobial and wound healing.
Grand Rounds
Clinical Lectures
Academic Office
Fax: 718-944-4219
Schedule an Appointment
More info
American Academy of Dermatology
American Society for Dermatologic Surgery
Society for Investigative Dermatology
Dermatologic Society of Greater New York
American Skin Association
American Medical Association
Dermatology Foundation
Nanodermatology Society (NDS)
National Institute of Arthritis & Musculoskeletal & Skin Diseases
Derm Atlas


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Silver Ring set with Clear Cubic Zirconia.
About the Thomas Sabo Charm Collection:
The Sterling Silver Collection from THOMAS SABO always offers the perfect accessory for current fashion trends. With a special sensitivity for Sterling silver, with the utmost eye for detail and a total flair for design and trends, the international designer label provides a refreshing alternative to the established luxury jeweller brands. At Thomas Sabo, top-quality 925 Sterling Silver is adorned using hand-cut and hand-set zirconia stone. The exquisite design competence and finish quality result in silver jewellery (necklaces, bracelets, earrings, cufflinks, rings and much more) which fulfil the highest demands in terms of aesthetics and quality.


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On-Campus Recruitment (OCR) provides Barnard College students the opportunity to personally interact with employers through information sessions, site visits and career fairs. In addition, it provides students with the opportunity to interview for internships, volunteer positions, as well as full-time and part-time positions with employers who visit campus during the Fall and Spring semesters.
WHEN DOES OCR BEGIN and END?
OCR begins early September through late November for the Fall semester and early January through late April for the Spring semester.
OCR Policies and On-Campus Recruiting are reserved for matriculated, degree-seeking students of Barnard College, Columbia University.
*Barnard requires ALL students to be enrolled in a minimum of 12 credits to participate in on-campus recruitment programs including but not limited to internships.
- First Step:
You must fully complete your profile in MillieCAREERS powered by Handshake. This includes: Contact information, educational information, employment preferences, demographic information, etc. This information is not accessible by any employers or your fellow students. Mandatory fields are marked with an asterisk (*).
To make multiple selections, hold down either the Control Key (PC) or the Command Key (Mac) while clicking the left mouse button. Once you have filled out all the information completely, click on the Save button.
Please note that your MillieCAREERS powered by Handshake profile needs to be updated annually at the beginning of each Fall semester. This is to ensure accuracy of student contact information and employment preferences.
The employment preferences allow BCD staff to send you targeted information on employment opportunities and career events that you are focused on.
- Second Step:
Next, select the "privacy" sub tab and answer two key questions:
- Do you want to receive email notifications from BCD? (We recommend answering "Yes")
*You will receive periodic notification of job opportunities, employer-based events, BCD workshops/presentations, and special career events. In addition, BCD strongly encourages you to monitor and read posted notices and reminders about BCD events under the "EVENTS" section of the BCD, website so that you do not miss important events and career opportunities.
- Do you want your resume to be included in our online eResume Books? (We recommend selecting "yes" only if you are uploading a resume that has already been critiqued by BCD staff.)
*Release Agreement: By selecting "yes" under opt-in resume book and uploading a resume into an identified eResume Book you are agreeing to make this document available for release by BCD.
- Third Step:
After filling out your profile and completing the privacy questions, you will need to upload at least one resume before you can start applying for positions and begin your participation in OCR.
- Save the document as a PDF
- Log-in to MillieCAREERS powered by Handshake
- Select "Documents" tab
- Click on "Add New" button
- Type in the "Label" you wish to give your resume
- Under "Document Type" be sure the radio button next to "Resume" is selected
- Click on the "Browse" button and identify the resume document you wish to upload in the window provided and hit the "Open" button
- Finally, click "Submit"
Now, you have successfully uploaded your resume into the MillieCAREERS powered by Handshake system. The above steps also apply to uploading cover letters, writing samples, transcripts, and more. This assures that your documents remain formatted as you originally intended for employers to review.
In addition, we STRONGLY RECOMMEND having all documents you use for applying to opportunities reviewed by a Peer Career Advisor (PCA) or counseling staff prior to uploading them into the MillieCAREERS powered by Handshake system.


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What is the ruling about remaining in a marriage when the wife has become a Muslim but her husband is still a kaafir? She has children with him and is afraid that they may go astray and be lost, and she hopes that her husband may be guided to Islam if she stays with him.
Praise be to Allaah.
As soon as a woman embraces Islam and her husband refuses to do likewise, the marriage is annulled and it is not permissible for her to live with him. But she should wait out the length of the 'iddah period. If he embraces Islam, she may go back to him and the previous marriage contract is still counted as valid, but if he does not embrace Islam before the 'iddah is over, then they are no longer married. If he subsequently embraces Islam and they want to get back together, a new marriage contract must be drawn up. It is not permissible to continue the marriage on the basis of being kind to him.
Majma' al-Fiqh al-Islami (Islamic Fiqh Council), p. 43.
The children should follow the Muslim parent, so try your best to get custody of them. May Allaah help us and help you by His kindness and mercy.


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What to CookCheese
Dinner Tonight: Chicken with Wine-Soaked Figs + Cheesy Millet
Inspiration for tonight's dinner: a trusty weeknight workhorse swaps overalls for a tux. Glistening and black as night, wine-and-honey-soaked dried mission figs lend a simple chicken dinner an air of exotic luxury.
Also, any recipe that demands you open a bottle of wine, but only calls for a glass, is perfect fodder for a weeknight dinner in our book. On the side, merrill's Millet with Cheese and Chives is a warming and hearty alternative to bland and butter-laden mashed potatoes or noodles.
Chicken with Figs, Wine and Honey by eatboutique
Millet with Cheese and Chives by merrill
The Grocery List (for 4)
4 chicken breasts
About 20 dried mission figs
1 cup millet
4 ounces Asiago Fresco or Fontina cheese
2 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
As always, we assume you keep a stocked kitchen and thus already have salt, pepper, milk, olive oil, honey, and a bottle of red wine. If not, what are you waiting for? Those are some darn handy things to have around!
The Plan
1. Toast the millet, ever so gently.
2. Add the milk, water, oil, salt. It will now simmer for about 20 minutes.
3. How great! 20 minutes is about how long the chicken will take. Turn your attention to the chicken and figs.
4. Finish up the millet after the chicken is done. The chicken will have cooled a bit when you sit down to eat, but that's okay.
Aside: Hmmm, you only used a cup of wine in the figs. Maybe you should pour yourself a glass and maybe you should turn on Downton Abbey and maybe someone should rub your feet while you sip and savor. After all, dinner is served.


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Weaselheadx is the Master of Time and Space
Last Activity: 06-23-2018 04:54 PM
About Me
- About Weaselheadx
- Title
- Do as you will.
- Location
- Altus, Oklahoma
- About Me
- I like pie. I also like to yak a lot. I'm a wanderer, I stumble through life trying to enjoy the moment rather than worry about tomorrow.
- Who I'd Like to Meet
- Anyone, out of general curiosity if nothing else.
- Interests
- role-playing, music, writing, movies, artwork, anime, fishing, football, libertarianism, dogs, tiny women, MMA, sadism, novels, alcohol, enlightenment, history, gaining superpowers...
- Music
- A lot(I own an insanely large music collection)... some of my faves, Smashing Pumpkins, Pink Floyd, Rob Zombie, TOOL, Monster Magnet, Cake, Radiohead, blah I could go on forever. Mainly I like alternative rock, classic rock, new wave, and thrash. Though I like industrial as well. Though I'm not one to turn away from music cause it doesn't fit into my genres. For example, I don't care for most hip hip/R&B, but I really dig on the Fugees.
- Movies
- V for Vendetta, The Big Lewbowski, Snatch, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Pan's Labyrinth, Donnie Darko...some of my faves, though I'm as much of a moviefile as I am a musicfile, recently I enjoyed Iron Man and Watchmen.
- Books
- some of my favorite authors... Orson Scott Card, Christopher Rowley, Margaret Weiss, Tracy Hickman, Robert Ludlum, Mark Twain, Jules Verne, George R.R. Martin, Richard Dawkins, Hunter S. Thompson, Michael Moorcock blah could go on...
- Heroes
- Hunter S. Thompson, Frederick Douglass, Carl Sagan, Richard Dawkins.
- Sex
- Male
- football, hoops, UFC, WWE, House, Sons of Anarchy, Community, Raising Hope, Wilfred Classic faves: Star Trek(most of um), Highlander, Kindred:The Embraced, The X-files, Seinfeld, Invader Zim, Dinosaurs, TMNT.
- Orientation
- Straight
- Smoker
- Never
- Drinker
- If I'm not drunk I'm probably dead.
- Marital Status
- Single
- Education
- High School
- I am here for?
- Um, to look at naked people., The community, I got lost and now I can't get home.
- Children
- Never going to happen
- Weaselheadx
- "He who fights too long against dragons becomes a dragon himself; and if you gaze too long into the abyss, the abyss will gaze into you." -Nietzsche
Showing Friends 1 to 40 of 120
View Weaselheadx's BlogRecent Entries
Latest Blog Entry
Posted 10-23-2013 at 08:36 PM by Weaselheadx Comments 1
http://altustimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/...0239950&Ref=AR So this guy is a big fan of the station and used to bring us liquor all the time and BS with us at the station, he even helped the owner work on the transmission site...and well he's apparently batshit crazy...yeah...
Posted 05-13-2013 at 11:53 AM by Weaselheadx Comments 6
I can't get the forums to work. I press forums it says "invalid page" or something. I see other people posting things, and I can respond to those, but I can't access the main forum page? HELP?
Posted 05-12-2013 at 06:57 PM by Weaselheadx Comments 2
So it's so rare that I meet new people that I vibe with at all, but these past few weeks it's been happening left and right. I feel almost high from it lol. I was at a party last night and we were all talking and people were throwing out different subjects and bands and things and everyone was just like riffing off each other and it was awesome. One of my new friends is a male to female transperson who is just starting the transition. When she first met us, she introduced herself as a male and was...
Posted 01-29-2013 at 08:30 PM by Weaselheadx Comments 4
I hear this phrase all the time, and I know it means to not scrutinize a gift, but where the hell did this come from? http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/don't_...e_in_the_mouth... so um there ya go. Things that I wonder about when bored at work...
Posted 01-21-2013 at 09:35 PM by Weaselheadx Comments 6
says hi to everyone. He is currently having computer issues so he can't get on the net and told me to tell all yous guys he misses you. He specifically told me to say "hi" to MJ and that after i told him about her new implant, he said "Wierdo, Gotta love her." lol
Recent Comments


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Bowers & Wilkins MM-1 computer speakers
A joy for the senses
Heads up!Welcome to this article from the Crutchfield archives. Have fun reading it, but be aware that the information may be outdated and links may be broken.
For a long time when someone mentioned "computer speakers" all I could picture were the free speakers that came with our PC. They were lightweight, spindly things with the sound quality of an AM radio.
That's no longer the image I have after taking home the Bowers & Wilkins MM-1 computer speakers for an extensive tryout. Of course, what matters in evaluating any kind of speakers is how they appeal to the ear. But in this case, the MM-1s were equally attractive to the eye and to the hand.
Extraordinary build quality
The first thing I noticed when I took the speakers out of the box was their heft. Each speaker weighs about two lbs, so it felt as substantial as it looks. The casing is made of brushed metal, with fine mesh speaker cloth covering the drivers. Each speaker has a thick rubber base (which serves double duty, as I explain below). When I set these down, I knew I wouldn't accidentally be knocking them over reaching for something else on the desk!
Like most computer speaker systems, the MM-1s have a powered amp in one, and then a speaker wire running to the second. With our old "free" speakers it meant a perpetual tangle of thin cables stuffed behind the monitor. Bowers & Wilkins provide thick, quality cables for their connectors. The rubber feet have notches that hold the cables securely after you plug them into base of the speakers. And as you can see on the diagram at right, the feet also have enough space to store extra cable. So only the length of cable I actually needed ran behind my laptop. And because the cable is thick, it lays relatively flat without tangling.
The pebble remote
Another extra that appealed to both my sense of sight and touch was the compact remote. Bowers & Wilkins provide a small, pebble-like remote, with a smooth black plastic top and a stainless steel backing. It fit very comfortably in the palm of my hand, and occasionally I found myself using it not as remote but as a worry stone.
But there's a practical reason for the remote. It provides basic control for the program providing the music (be it iTunes or Windows Media Player). I could pause, resume play, or skip tracks, as well as turn on and off the speakers and adjust the volume. Being able to skip tracks from the remote was handy, as I didn't have to minimize the window I was working in on my laptop to get into iTunes to manage my music.
The MM-1 speakers — what they are and what they aren't
The MM-1 are designed for close-range listening. Each speaker has a 3" woofer and a 1" tweeter, each individually powered by its own amplifier (built into the power speaker). I found the sweet spot for the system to be about two or three feet away from the speakers — perfect when I was seated at my desk facing the MM-1s arrayed on either side of my laptop.
But they won't fill a room with sound. When I got up and moved around, I could still hear the speakers, but the music didn't have nearly as much presence. And when I walked about the house, the overall sound was less distinctive (although often audible). When used properly, the MM-1s delivered first-rate sound. As a system to make your time at the computer more enjoyable, be it in a cube at work, or a home office or den, the MM-1s performed far above my "free" speakers and then some.
Sound quality
Bowers & Wilkins paid as much attention to the construction of the interior of the speakers as they did to the exterior. As I already mentioned, each speaker had an individually powered tweeter and woofer. By using two speakers for each channel, the music had more detail than I normally hear through single-driver computer speakers. The close proximity of the speakers made up for the lack of subwoofer. Sure, my hip-hop tracks didn't rattle the shelves, but because I was sitting a few feet away they didn't have to. The speakers deliver deep, strong bass that sounded perfectly fine when I sat in the sweet spot (that is, my desk chair).
And the same was true of my classical selections. There the bass might be more subtle, but it's equally important. I had no problems hearing the contrabasses and cellos playing in their extreme low registers for the opening of Gorecki's Third Symphony or in the massed ensemble sections of Mahler's Symphony No. 8. And with my classical music, the tweeters did a good job filling out the higher overtones that — while not immediately audible — provide important coloration to the upper registers.
Built-in DAC
Another advantage the MM-1 speakers have is a built-in DAC (Digital-to-Analog Converter) that's better than the average computer sound card. This meant that some of the detail my MacBook's sound card misses is decoded and reproduced by the MM-1s. The speakers come with a USB cable that plugged directly into my computer. This digital connection allows the system to bypass the sound card. When I plugged them in for the first time, I did have to go into the system menu and select the MM-1s as my preferred audio output, but even though I plugged and unplugged my laptop as I moved about throughout the week, I only had to make that selection once.
The speakers also come with a stereo minijack-to-stereo minijack analog cable so you can plug portable devices into the system as well. I actually used that cable for a little experiment. It's one thing to be told that bypassing the sound card is better, but how much better? I picked a track I knew very well and plugged in the system using the USB cable. After listening for a while, I unplugged it, and connected the system using the stereo minijack cable running from the computer's headphone jack to the speakers. With this connection, the music was processed by the Mac's sound card.
What a difference! While the speakers did a good job with both connections, the music simply didn't have the same clarity or presence. It still sounded better than running it through the laptop's speakers, but if there was ever any doubt, that little A/B test put them to rest. Given a choice, I will always bypass my computer's sound card. Because now I've heard what I've been missing.
Testing different sound sources
When I try out any kind of speaker system or headphones with digital music files, I like to run the full range of bit rates. A lot of how "good" or "bad" a track sounds depends a lot on how much compression's been applied to it. Most of my music library is in Apple Lossless format, but I still have a fair number of MP3 files with 256Kbps or even 128Kbps bit rates. And many of the Internet radio stations I listen to stream at 96Kbps or even 64Kbps.
The separately powered speakers and built-in DAC helped each track live up to its full potential — whatever that was as determined by its bit rate. My lossless files sounded full and finely detailed. It was as if there was large sphere of sound encompassing the area around my laptop. My compressed MP3 files still had some detail, but tended to sound thinner and a little harsher — but much better than through the laptop's sound card.
Internet radio stations sounded pretty good. It was as if I was listening to good quality FM stations. The separation between channels was nice, and for the most part, the music had a greater amount of detail than I was normally used to.
Great for the workplace
I've tried other high-end speaker systems with subwoofers, and while they had a great sound, that floor-standing sub sometimes provided a placement challenge in my somewhat cramped home office. By only having the two speakers, I felt like Bowers & Wilkins came out ahead. The woofers more than adequately supplied the bass for my listening needs, and the two compact speakers with retractable cables left plenty of the desktop free to use as a work area.
Sometimes I box up review speakers and get them back to the office right away. This time I think I'll just wait until someone asks for the Bowers & Wilkins MM-1 computer speakers. They're that good.


text:
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General Practice, Solo & Small Firm DivisionBest of ABA Sections
Real Property, Probate & Trust Law
Qualified Retirement Plans for the Small Business Owner
Irwin N. Rubin and William Miller
Qualified retirement plans offer advantages for an owner of a small business. The goal is to structure a qualified retirement plan that will maximize the contribution for the owner while keeping common law employee costs at a minimum. Numerous planning techniques are available that will attain such goals for some clients, especially older owner/employers who have not yet accumulated large retirement plan assets.
Tax Advantages. The tax deferral advantages may continue not only beyond the owner's retirement but also beyond the owner's death, when those assets are rolled into an IRA by a surviving spouse. The income tax advantages available to the business owner under a qualified retirement plan are:
• deferral of tax on otherwise taxable compensation until its distribution;
• deduction of the deferred compensation currently; and
• income tax exemption for plan earnings.
Although qualified retirement plan assets will be included in the owner's estate upon death, the deferral of income tax for both the owner and the owner's heirs produces significant financial advantages.
Distributions. A participant or a participant's spouse may, to a large extent, control the timing and amount of taxable distributions by rolling over the taxable part of a qualified plan distribution to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) or to another qualified plan. Qualified retirement plans must generally give participants the ability to roll over pretax distributions--other than required minimum distributions beginning at age 701/2 or annuity payments--directly into another qualified retirement plan or IRA. Additional taxes apply when (1) distributions are taken before age 591/2 ; and (2) certain minimum amounts are not distributed after age 701/2.
Qualified Retirement Planning. A qualified retirement plan should attempt to maximize tax deferrals for business owners and minimize the costs of the retirement plan for other employees.
• Defined benefit plan. A defined benefit plan provides for a definitely determinable benefit at retirement. For example, a defined benefit plan may provide a benefit equal to 25 percent of an employee's compensation payable in monthly installments beginning at age sixty-five. Compensation taken into account for any employee under a defined benefit plan or defined contribution plan (discussed below) cannot in 1997 exceed $160,000. Actuarial calculations are made annually to determine the necessary contributions so that the plan has sufficient funds to satisfy the plan's obligations. Generally, for an older business owner, a defined benefit plan will generate large contributions and a large tax deduction. If the employees are also older, high contributions will be necessary to fund the staff's benefits. Contributions under defined benefit plans are not limited to $30,000 as they are in certain defined contribution plans. The law requires that certain minimum funding contributions be made to defined benefit plans regardless of the profits of the business. Distributions under these plans require spousal consent. Generally, IRS regulations require that the same benefit formula apply to all employees.
• Defined contribution plan—profit-sharing plan. A profit-sharing plan generally provides for discretionary employer contributions not to exceed 15 percent of employee compensation. The amount payable at retirement depends on the amount of the yearly contributions and the investment experience of the fund. These contributions are deductible by the employer. Contributions are generally allocated to employees in proportion to compensation. Compensation taken into account for any employee cannot in 1997 exceed $160,000, so the maximum contribution should not exceed $24,000 (15% of $160,000). Also, contributions do not have to be made each year as with a defined benefit plan or money purchase pension plan. Generally, distributions from a profit-sharing plan are not subject to spousal consent.
• Defined contribution plan—money purchase pension plan. A money purchase pension plan provides for a fixed rate of contribution. For example, this plan may provide a contribution of 25 percent of compensation for each employee. The law requires the employer to make the fixed contributions each year regardless of profits. Because the contribution rate is the same for everyone, the IRS nondiscrimination rules are satisfied. Distributions under a money purchase plan are subject to spousal consent. The employer receives a tax deduction for the contributions.
• Integration. Another version of a profit-sharing or money purchase plan is an integrated plan. In this plan, the contribution is coordinated with the Social Security taxable wage base. This permits a slightly greater contribution as a percentage of salary for employees earning in excess of the Social Security taxable wage base. An example of this formula would be a contribution by an employer for each employee of 10 percent of compensation and an additional contribution equal to 5.7 percent of the amount by which the employee's compensation (up to $160,000) exceeds the Social Security taxable wage base for the year. Thus, an employee with compensation of $160,000 would receive a 1997 contribution of $21,392 (10% of $160,000 plus 5.7% of $94,600 ($160,000 — $65,400)). An employee earning $30,000 would receive a $3,000 contribution.
• 401(k) plan. This is a plan under which employees can elect to reduce a portion of their salaries and have the amounts contributed to the plan. In this plan the contribution is coming from the employee's salary. The employee is not taxed on the amounts contributed to the plan and his or her W-2 income is reduced by the amount deferred into the plan. The employer receives a tax deduction for the salary reduction contribution. In 1997, the limit for a salary reduction contribution is $9,500. For this plan to work, the salary reduction amounts of highly compensated employees (HCEs) (including owners) can be slightly greater as a percentage of pay than the non-HCE salary deferrals, but cannot exceed the amounts prescribed under the Code.
• New comparability plan. This is a defined contribution plan that can be structured to provide significantly greater contributions for business owners who are older than their employees. The disparity in contributions in favor of the HCEs compared with the non-HCEs can far exceed any disparity in contributions for the HCEs permitted under profit-sharing, money purchase, 401(k) or integrated plans. Under this variation, greater allocations are permitted because the plan can be treated like a defined benefit plan. The contribution allocations for each participant are projected to a testing age (usually 65) and converted into an annual benefit. The annual benefit is divided by current compensation to obtain a benefit percentage. The benefit percentages for the HCEs are compared to the benefit percentages of non-HCEs in testing for nondiscrimination. As long as the plan satisfies the IRS rules for nondiscrimination based on the benefit percentages, disproportionately greater contributions for the older business owner are acceptable.
Conclusion. These few examples provide concepts that planners may use to take advantage of qualified retirement plans to optimize and customize appropriate plans for their small business owner clients.
Irwin N. Rubin is counsel in Danziger & Markhoff LLP in White Plains, New York. William Miller, M.S.P.A., M.A.A.A., is chief actuary for Danziger & Markhoff LLP in White Plains, New York.
This article is an abridged and edited version of one that originally appeared in Probate and Property, January/February 1997 (11:1).


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Zernike Polynomial extraction of deformed optical surface
Ivar Kjelberg, CSEM sa
You will find hereby a COMSOL Multiphysics v4.2a Solid + Optimisation model extracting the first dozen Zernike polynomials from a deformed circular surface, expressed in RMS values.
In optics, the expressions of the deformations of an optical surface, such as a mirror under gravity or pressure loads, are often decomposed in Zernike orthogonal polynomial coefficients.
Unfortunately, there are several normalisation of these polynomials, the different optical programmes uses each there own normalisation, so the results should be carefully benchmarked against each particular softeware you use. And pls be aware of the loong formulas, these might still contain typos ;)
The present normalisation is the one from J.C.Wyant, 2003, "ZernikePolonymialsForTheWeb" that can be found under www.mpia.de /AO/...
Have fun COMSOLING
Other Entries by This Contributor
- [SM 3.5a] 3D Euler Beam Properties Calculations
- [AC/DC V3.5a] Maxwell Stress Tensor "pitfall" example
- [SM v3.5a] Rotation constraints in structural module. With complements
User Comments
Yavuz Öztürk
Mar 4, 2016 at 4:50pm UTC
This is an excellent model. Thanks for sharing it.
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"Nanzan-Japan Expo" at UH Hilo Sept 7University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo
Director, Media Relations, University Relations
The public is invited to meet students from Nanzan University in Japan at the "Nanzan-Japan Expo!" on Wednesday, September 7 in the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Campus Center 301 from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Food sampling, Yukata photo opportunities, a Tohoku tsunami/earthquake update and cultural displays will be part of the festivities. Parking is $3.
Ten students from Nanzan University are visiting the UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College campuses from September 5- 9 for intercultural engagement and exchange. Hosted by UH Hilo's Division of Student Affairs and Linguistics Department and Hawai'i CC's Hawai'i Lifestyle Program, this program helps to support one of the priority goals of the new UH Hilo Campus Strategic Plan by promoting multicultural fluency through exchange opportunities.
Students participating in Nanzan's Good Practice program will attend classes with UH Hilo students to learn about the U.S. academic education, visit with Ke Kula 'O Nawahiokalani'opu'u to learn about the Hawaiian language immersion, and gain hands-on cultural learning of hula and farming. During their visit, the students will work on research projects with UH Hilo students. The culmination of the Good Practice program will be in October when five UH Hilo students and one faculty member visit Nanzan University where they will collectively present their projects.
To learn more about exchange opportunities at UH Hilo, contact the Center for Global Education and Exchange at 933-8810.


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Promote your beer to thirsty patrons looking for it.Learn More
Heads up! Asahi Brewmaster's Select may not be available near you. Follow this beer to get notified when it's available nearby, try searching in a different area, or discover some similar beer.
Vienna Lager5.2% ABV18 IBU
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A chestnut colored lager with a malty aroma and subtle toasty sweetness. A pinch of noble hops gives this refreshing beer a clean finish.
Vienna Lager5.2% ABV33 IBU
Brooklyn BreweryBrooklyn, NY
Available at very few places nearby
The award winning Brooklyn Lager is amber gold in color and displays a firm malt center supported by fine bitterness and floral hop aroma.


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By Guest Author Linnea Schmidt
By Guest Author Ethan Guthman
By Guest Author Emily Larson
By Guest Author Katie Arnolds
Por Autor Invitado Katie Arnolds
By Guest Author Tanya L. Brown
By Christy Beitzel
Por Christy Beitzel
By Kelsey Repine
Por Kelsey Repine
By Guest Author Jacki Essig
By Guest Author, Saskia Bunge Montes
Por Autor Invitado, Saskia Bunge Montes
By Guest Author, Merlin Ariefdjohan
Por Autor Invitado, Merlin Ariefdjohan
By guest author Molly Terhune
Por Molly Terhune
By Guest Author John Soltys
Por Autor Invitado John Soltys
By Nicole L. Garneau, PhD
Por Autor Invitado, Kelsey Repine
By Guest Author, Kelsey Repine
By Guest Author, Molly Terhune
Por Autor Invitado, Molly Terhune
Guest Author, Lyndsay Krisher
Autor Invitado, Lyndsay Krisher
Guest Author, Katie Arnolds
Autor Invitado, Katie Arnolds
Guest Author, Merlin Ariefdjohan
Autor Invitado, Merlín Ariefdjohan
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Autor Invitado, Katie Arnolds
Guest Author, Veronica Searles Quick
Autor Invitado, Veronica Searles Quick
Autor Invitado, Merlín Ariefdjohan
Guest Author, Dr. Jessica Metcalf
Guest Author, Michael A. Bagley
By Chelsea Corser-Jensen
Conversations in Local Health Research
By Brian J. Kempf, PhD
By Rhea May, PhD
By Daniel Raible
By Katherine Lee, PhD
By Audrey Bergouignan, PhD
Thanks to ASMcue for the invitation to speak this year and to all the great educators and scientists in attendance!
By Katherine Brandao, PhD
Congrats to Bruce Randolph School for winning the [email protected] competition sponsored by LiveWell Colorado!
By Jennifer Marie Stratford, PhD
Member Response, Lactose Intolerance
A special thanks to the many readers who sent in comments and questions about "Today's Paleo Diet" recently published in Catalyst.
By Laura Harmacek
By Alexa Dickson, PhD
Guest Blog Post, Dr. Ernesto Salcedo
By Nicole L. Garneau PhD and Tanya Breeling
By Nicole Garneau, PhD
By Nicole L Garneau, PhD
How to Give Veggies a Competitive Edge with Kids By Melissa Wdowik, PhD, RD
By Ernesto Salcedo, PhD
By Keely Sudhoff, PhD
By Yo Pearl the Science Girl
By Devin Walecka
BY Devin Walecka
Message from the Health Sciences Team
By Bridget Coughlin, PhD
By Meghan Sloan, MA
By Jonathan Grudis, MA
Invite from the Health Sciences Team
A great thing about being a scientist is working with
collaborations and forging a timely and effective partnership.
Truly, the Health Sciences Department here at the Museum could not
exist without these key partners.
This week, Yo Pearl salutes Dr. Bev Tepper, an esteemed nutritionist who
studies how sensory perception affects what we eat. Dr. Tepper
currently serves as director of the Sensory Evaluation Laboratory
at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, and also as the
Vice Chair of the Rutgers Institutional Review Board.
(For those of you who know me well enough, you can likely hear
the echoes of the Rutgers fight song ringing in your ears as
you well know as I have a hard time not singing it whenever Rutgers
is mentioned- RU Rah Rah!)
I first met Dr. Tepper at the 2010 Annual Meeting for the
Association for Chemoreception Sciences, and then we reunited at
this year's meeting. What drew me and my team to Bev and her work
was that she was passionate and humble, her work explored the
far reaches of what is being done with taste and
nutrition, and last but not least, she was willing to
help out newcomers to the field of chemoreception. I asked her if
she would be willing to visit the Museum and our community-based
lab and help us to navigate the next steps for conducting
audience-focused research.
With that, Dr. Tepper found herself on a flight from Newark to
Denver. She arrived on a Wednesday evening, and as it turns out,
the Museum was hosting its annual Donor Awards Dinner, and so she
came as my guest. It was a fabulous introduction to the Museum and
to our incredible community that support us. We had cocktails in
the dioramas and dinner in the atrium on the first floor. It was a
great night to welcome a collaborator.
Dr. Tepper gave an engaging talk the next morning as part of our
Health Sciences Seminar Series we host for our volunteers in the
lab and in Expedition Health. The focus was nutrition and taste,
and something interesting that we do not fully explore in our lab
is how psychology really impacts what we eat. For example,
consciously restricting your diet, being food adventurous and food
neophobia are a few classifications that can override genetics. The
seminar was followed by a brown bag lunch with staff and volunteers
in the Harry T. Lewis Jr room that overlooks the park, the city and
the mountains (I had to show off Colorful Colorado). Then we were
down to business.
Dr. Tepper toured the lab and went through our enrollment
protocols. She met with each staff member and learned about the
excellent opportunities we have for working with the public and
conversely, the challenges that go into making sure our research is
available to the community and hold up to scientifically sound
standards. We capped the visit off with a tour of the Rocky
Mountain Taste and Smell Center and lunch with Dr. Tom Finger and
Dr. Sue Kinnamon, both at the University of Colorado Anschutz
Medical Campus.
It was an incredible two days having Bev here to help us. We
explored everything from the basic logistics of human participation
to in depth collaborations and how our labs can dive into untouched
subjects. Yo Pearl salutes Dr. Bev Tepper for her
dedication to new ideas, unconventional collaborations and
excellent science and science communication.


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Valentino Rossi finally put an end to the speculation today at the MotoGP pre-race press conference, and announced that Ducati Corse will use an aluminum chassis during the Aragon GP this weekend. First tested last week on the Ducati Desmosedici GP12, the FTR-built aluminum frame has improved the front end feeling for the Desmosedici, an issue that has plagued the Ducati all this season. Rossi will first use the new aluminum parts during Free Practice tomorrow, though the team hasn't confirmed their use in the race just yet.
"We tested last week after the race, and it was not so bad," said Rossi when talking about Ducati Corse's post-Mugello test. "We tried something different on the bike to improve the front feeling and turning, and the lap times were not so bad. I was a bit faster than the last time, and basically the feeling was quite good, so we're moving forward."
When pressed about what changes Ducati made, and whether or not Rossi test the rumored aluminum frame, the nine-time World Champion was quick to correct. "It is not a frame," explained Rossi. "The philosophy of the Ducati is the same, but the front part of the bike is a bit different, and is in aluminum, and not in carbon like before. But about the material, it is a question of time. We have to work to try and understand how the bike and with aluminum you need a lot less time compared to the carbon. The bike improved a bit, but this is just the first step. We need to keep working to come back and fight for the front."